Assessor

 ISSUED: March 25, 2024

 ANNOUNCES AN OPEN COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION FOR:

 ASSESSOR   

 EXAM NO.  87-532

DATE OF EXAMINATION:        June 1, 2024

EXAM FILING FEE:      $15.00

LAST DAY FOR FILING:       Applications must be received no later than close of business April 26, 2024.

VACANCY:        This examination is being held to fill present and future vacancies in the Lewis County Real Property Department.

SALARY:            $25.45 hr. – $30.48 hr.

DUTIES:              Involves responsibility in valuation for assessment of real property for tax purposes and the preparation of an annual assessment roll. The incumbent is responsible for providing real property appraisals, equalizations, and assessments for designated properties with the County.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  (Per Part 8188-2.2 of the Rules and Regulations of the Department of Taxation and Finance): Either:

• Certification by the NYS Office of Real Property Tax Services (ORPTS) as a candidate for assessor; or
• Graduation from an accredited four-year college and six months experience involving the valuation of real property, such as Assessor, appraiser, real estate broker, valuation data manager, real property appraisal aide or a written commitment from the county Director of Real Property that the county will provide training in assessment administration, approved by the state board, within a six-month period; or
• Graduation from an accredited two-year college and one year of experience as described in (2) above; or
• Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma, and two years of satisfactory full-time paid experience as described in (2) above.

NOTE: An equivalent combination of the education and experience described in section (2) above is subject to the following:

• If the Assessor has been previously certified by the State Board as a candidate for Assessor pursuant to subpart 188-3 of this part, such certification is equivalent to two years of the experience described in section (2) above if it has not expired.
• For the purposes of crediting full-time paid experience, a thirty-hour week shall be deemed as full-time employment.
• Three years of part-time paid experience as sole Assessor or as chairman of the Board of Assessors shall be credited as one year of full-time paid experience, and five years of part-time paid experience as a member of a Board of Assessors shall be credited as one year of full-time paid experience. Paid part-time experience in excess of these amounts shall be credited in accordance with these criteria.
• Volunteer experience in an assessor’s office may be credited as paid experience to the extent that it includes routine tasks such as data collection; calculation of value estimates; preparation of preliminary reports; providing routine information to a computer center; public relations; and review of value estimates, computer output and exemption applications.
• In no case shall less than six months of the experience described in section (2) above be acceptable with the exception of county training as provided for in section 188-2.4(a)(3) of this subpart.

NOTE: In Accordance with Part 8188 of the Rules and Regulations of the NYS ORPTS, the NYS ORPTS must approve the application of a candidate for Assessor prior to appointment. No person may be appointed Assessor until the NYS ORPTS has determined he/she is qualified. A copy of the NYS ORPTS qualification determination letter must be received prior to the appointment taking effect.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT: Appointees will be required to possess and maintain a valid Driver’s License to operate a motor vehicle in New York State.

COPY OF CERTIFICATION OR COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS MUST ACCOMPANY COMPLETED APPLICATION

SUBJECT OF EXAMINATION:  A test designed to evaluation knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in the following areas:

1. Preparing written material: These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.
2. Principles and techniques of real property appraisal: These questions test for a knowledge of principles and practices used in the appraisal of agricultural, commercial, and residential real property including knowledge of the three approaches to value; sales comparison, income, and cost estimation.
3. Principles, practices and theory of real property assessment: These questions test for a knowledge of the equalization rate process, the assessors’ calendar, the content of the assessment roll, and the exemptions from real property taxes in New York State. These questions will also test for the ability to use public relations skills when confronted by individuals in your municipality.
4. Supervision: These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices employed in planning, organizing, and controlling the activities of a work unit toward predetermined objectives. The concepts covered, usually in a situational question format, include such topics as assigning and reviewing work; evaluating performance; maintaining work standards; motivating and developing subordinates; implementing procedural change; increasing efficiency; and dealing with problems of absenteeism, morale, and discipline.

 

TEST GUIDE:   The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However, candidates may find information in the publication ‘General Guide to Written Tests’ helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at:https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm

 

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

APPLICATIONS:  Unless otherwise indicated on this announcement, the candidate will complete one “Application for Examination or Employment” for each exam he/she wishes to take.  No copies will be accepted.  Applicants must answer every question on the application form and make sure that the application is complete in all respects.  Incomplete applications will be disapproved.  All statements made by candidates are subject to verification.  POST-MARKED APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

FILING FEE:  The fee must accompany the application.  Applicants whose forms are not accompanied by the appropriate fee or whose personal checks are returned for insufficient funds will not be considered as candidates.  Payment must be in the form of check or money order made payable to the Lewis County Treasurer.  Refunds of fees will not be issued to applicants who are disqualified for failure to apply by the last day for filing, not meeting the minimum qualifications, or a candidate’s failure to appear for testing on the scheduled test date.

WORK EXPERIENCE:  Unless otherwise noted, experience credited towards meeting the minimum qualifications must be full-time paid work experience.  Part-time paid work experience will be accepted based on its full-time equivalent.

APPLICATION FEE WAIVER:  A waiver of application fee will be allowed if you are unemployed and primarily responsible for the support of a household.  In addition, a waiver of application fee will be allowed if you are determined eligible Medicaid, or receiving Supplemental Security Income payments, or Public Assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Family Assistance, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or Safety Net Assistance) or are certified Job Training Partnership Act/Workforce Investment Act eligible through a State or local Social Service agency.  All claims for application fee waiver are subject to verification.  If you can verify eligibility for application fee waiver, complete a “Request for Application Fee Waiver and Certification” form and submit it with your application by the close of business on the application deadline as listed on the examination announcement.  Fee waiver forms are available at the Lewis County Civil Service office or online at simplecivic.com

TIME AND PLACE OF EXAM:  Accepted candidates will be notified when and where to appear for an exam.  No one will be admitted to an exam without the official admittance notice.

RESIDENCY:  New York State Residence is not required for most positions.  However, you must be eligible for employment in the United States.  An appointing authority may exercise its rights under Section 23-4a of Civil Service Law to give preference to legal residents of their jurisdiction.

VETERAN CREDITS:  If you are a War-Time Veteran, or if you are currently in the United States Armed Forces, you may be eligible to have extra credits added to your passing exam score.  However, it is your responsibility to submit the appropriate Veterans’ Credit form(s) on or before the date of the examination.    Forms are available in the Civil Service office or online at: simplecivic.com.   In addition to the Veterans’ Credit Form, you must include a copy of your discharge papers (DD-214).  The time periods for which veterans’ credit is permitted are listed on the Veterans’ Credit Application.

ADDITIONAL CREDIT ALLOWED CHILDREN OF FIREFIGHTERS AND POLICE OFFICERS KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY:  In conformance with Section 85-a of the Civil Service Law, children of firefighters and police officers killed in the line of duty shall be entitled to receive an additional 10 points in a competitive exam for original appointment in the same municipality in which his or her parent has served.  If you are qualified to participate in this exam and are a child of a firefighter or a police officer killed in the line of duty killed in this municipality, please inform this office of this matter when you submit your application for exam.  A candidate claiming such credit has a minimum of two months from the application deadline to provide the necessary documentation to verify additional credit eligibility.  However, no credit may be added after the eligible list has been established.

ELIGIBLE LISTS:  Eligible lists will be established in the order of final rating for successful candidates and will be established for a minimum period of one (1) year and a maximum of four (4) years.  Appointment from an eligible list must be made from the top 3 candidates willing to accept appointment.

SABBATH OBSERVERS/DISABLED CANDIDATES/MILITARY MEMBERS:  Applicants whose religious beliefs or military service prevent their taking exams on the scheduled date and disabled candidates who require special accommodations to take the test should indicate the need for special arrangements on their application.

MULTIPLE EXAMINATIONS SCHEDULED FOR THE SAME DAY:  If you have applied to take a written test announced by either one or several local jurisdictions (county, town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as the written test, you must notify each of the local jurisdictions no later than two weeks before the test date, so they can make arrangements for taking all tests at one test site.  All examinations for positions in State government will be held at a State examination center.  The Cross-Filer form is available at the Lewis County Civil Service or online at simplecivic.com.

CALCULATORS:  Unless otherwise notified, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand-held solar or battery powered calculators.  Devices with typewriter keyboards, Spellcheckers, Personal Digital Assistants, Address Books, Language Translators, Dictionaries, or any other similar devices are PROHIBITED.

CELL PHONES or ELECTRONIC/COMMUNICATION DEVICES AT THE TEST SITE:  Do not bring cell phones, beepers, headphones, or any electronic or other communication devices to the test site.  The use of such devices at the test site in the test room, hallways, restrooms, building, grounds, or other areas could result in your disqualification.

CHANGE OF ADDRESS:  If you move, it is your responsibility to notify the Civil Service Office of your new address.  The Civil Service Office makes no attempt to find candidates who have moved.  Failure to notify the Civil Service Office could result in being passed over for appointment.

BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION:  Appointees from an eligible list are required to undergo a criminal history background investigation, which may include a fingerprint check to determine suitability for appointment.  Failure to meet the standards for the background investigation may result in disqualification.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT FOR APPOINTMENT IN SCHOOL DISTRICTS:  Per Chapter 180 of the Laws of 2000, and by regulations of the Commissioner of Education, to be employed in a position designation by a school district as involving direct contact with students, a clearance for employment from the State Education Department is required.

This examination is prepared and rated by the New York State Department of Civil Service in accordance with Section 23-3 of the Civil Service Law.  The provisions of the New York State Civil Service Rules and Regulations, which deal with the rating of examinations, will apply.  Federal and State law prohibits discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, age, handicap or national origin.

APPLICATIONS AND FURTHER INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED AT THE LEWIS COUNTY CIVIL SERVICE OFFICE, 7660 N. STATE STREET, LOWVILLE, NY  13367.  PHONE (315) 376-5349.

LEWIS COUNTY IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER